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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Chap. H-1 A 

'- 9) 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ji) 



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PETITIONS, 

REMONSTRANCES AND ACTS 



RELATING TO 



Littleton and Boxborough, 



1782 to 1869. 






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COPIES OF PETITIONS, REMONSTRANCES AND ACTS 



RELATING TO 



The Establishment of the Town of Boxborough, and 

Repeated Refusals of the Legislature to compel 

certain inhabitants of Littleton to join 

the Town of Boxborough. 



After three failures to have Boxborough set oflf as a town, the 
following petition was filed in 1782 : 

V Petition for tlie Establishment of the Parish of Boxborough, 1782. 

To the Hoiibie Senate and Hon^i^e House of Representative of the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Humbly Sheweth : — 

That your petitioners (the inhabitants of the extreme part of the 
towns of Stow, Littleton and Harvard) have long labored under very 
grate difficultys on account of the grate distance from the place of 
Public Worship in the towns to which they respectively l)elong be- 
ing at the distance of four and five miles, to ramedy which they 
have erected a House for Public Worship in a convenient place, and 
procured preaching a grate part of the time for several years past 
(but as they are not excused from |)nying to the Support of preach- 
ing in some of the towns to which they belong), that also is a grate 
burden. And although they have not succeeded in their application 
to a former General Court, they would now supplicate your Hon" 
for that relief that your Hours only can give and without which they 
must drag through the remainder of their lives groaning under the 
burdens they have thus far borne, and leave it as an entailment on 
their posterity. 

Your memorialist therefore humbly prays therefore that they 
may be incorporated into a town, district, or Parish, agreeably to 
the plan herewith exhibited and as in duty bound shall ever pray 

Silas Taylor 

March 7th, 26th, 1782. and 69 others, 

committee. 



In Semite June (5, 1782. llciid iind thereupon ordered that Solo- 
mon Frccmun, Esq., with such as the Honble House shall join, be 
a committee to take this Petition and the papers uccompying into 
consideration and report thereon. 

Sent down for concurrence. 

S. Adams, President. 

In the House of Representatives June 7, 1782. Read and non- 
curred and thereupon ordered that this Petition be referred to the 
second Wednesday of the next sitting of the General Court. 
Sent up for noncurrence. 

Nath Gorham, Speaker. 

lu Senate June 7, 1782. Read and concurred. 

S. Adams, President. 

In Senate September 25, 1782. Read and thereupon ordered 
that Samuel Baker, Esq., with such as the Hon^le House shall join, 
be a committee to take this Petition and the papers accompanying 
the same into consideration and report thereon. 
Sent down for concurrence. 

S. Adams, President. 

In the House of Representatives, Sept 25, 1782. Read and con- 
curred and Mr. Whitney of Northborough and Colo Faulkner are 
joined. Nath Gorham, Speaker. 

The Committee of both Houses appointed to take in considera- 
tion the Petition of Silas Taylor and others and the Papers accom- 
panying the same and report what is proper to be done thereon, 
have attended that service and are of opinion that the Petitioners 
which belongs to the Towns of Stow and Harvard should be 
incorporated into a district with such of the inhabitants of Littleton 
as are included in the Petition and shall within the space of twelve 
months signify that they desire to belong to the Said District and 
no other, and that the Petitioners have leave to bring in a l)ill 

accordingly which is submitted. 

Samuel Bakeb, Jr., Per Order 



In Senate Sept. 27, 1782. Read and accepted and ordered that 
the Petitioners have leave to bring iu a bill. 

Sent down for Concurrence, 

S. Adams, President. 

In the House of Representatives Sept. 27, 1782. 
Read and Concurred, 

Nathaniel Gorham, Speaker. 

1.0 the whole Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts : 

May it Please Your Honors : — 

We, the Subscribers, Selectmen of the town of Littleton, are in- 
formed that a number of the inhabitants of the south part of said 
town have petitioned your Honors that they with others may be set 
off into a separate precinct or parish, which is against the desire 
of many whom they petition for, and to the great damage of the 
town, should their prayer be granted; therefore, in behalf of said 
town, we the Selectmen of said town, pray your Honors would in- 
dulge the town with an opportunity of showing to your Honors the 
reason why the prayer of the petitioners should not be granted — 
the way and manner we submit to your Honors. And we in duty 
bound shall ever pray. 

.Jon A. Reed, 1 

JosiAH Hartwell, I Selectmen 

William Henry Prentice, )> of 
JoNA. Whetcomb, I Littleton. 

James King, J 

Littleton, Oct. 8, 1782. 



To the tvhole Court: 

We, the Subscribers, Inhabitants of the town of Littleton, being 
informed that a petition is referred to the Honorable Court praying 
that a town Parish or District may be* erected and set off from the 
towns of Littleton, Stow and Harvard, we the Subscribers, inhabi- 
tants of the town of Littleton, l)eing within the line proposed of the 



Parish or district prayed for, as set forth in said petition ; Bog leave 
to remonstrate to the Ilun'hl Court against our being set off as is 
prayed for in s'd Petition ; for the reasons following: 

1st. That we the suhserihers are situated not more than three 
miles from the Meeting House in said Littleton, and are {>rovided 
with a good road to the same, so we are able to attend Public VVor- 
shiji A'ith our families comfortably at all seasons of the year without 
diticulty. 

2d. That the town of Littleton is but a little more than four 
miles square and l)eing only a farming town, and must be consid- 
ered as already to small to enjoy those priviledgcs and advantages 
for which towns and })arishes wei'e constituted withcnit the individ- 
uals thereof being overl)urdened with taxes. 

3d. That if the prayer of the aforesaid petition be granted there 
will be a heavj' expense in making of road, to the meeting house 
built by some individuals in the proposed parish, which at the 
present day in particular is too burdensome for us to support, and 
in no respect can the subscribers be benefitted by said petition being 
granted, but in every view of the matter greatly injured and hurt. 
And the subscribers beg leave to observe to the Honorable Court, 
that this is the third time that we have been obliged to be at the 
expense and trouble of writing to, and attending upon the Hon'l 
Court to prevent the prayer of the same petition being granted ; 
and the Subscribers pray that the Hon'l Court would request said 
petition, more especially as far as it relates U) us the Subscribers — 
Hoping that the Honoiable Court will not deprive us of those advan- 
tages, privileges and rights which wc and our hithers have so long 
enjoyed. 



Littleton, Oct. Mth, 1782. 

Samuel Lawrence 
Elias Taylor 
Tfiomas Wood 
Daniel Whehomh 
Jonathan Patch 
Nathaniel Cobleoh 



John Wood 
Solomon Foster 
Jedidiah Taylor 



An act for erecting a District in the County of Middlesex^ by the 
name of Boxborouyh. 

Preamble. — Whereas a number of inhabitants living in the ex- 
treme parts of the towns of Stow, Harvard and Littleton labor under 
many inconveniences by reason of their great distance from any 
place of Public Worship, and have requested this court that they 
may be incorporated into a district with all the privileges of a town, 
that of sending a Representative to the General Court excepted : 

Sect. 1. Be it therefore enacted by the Senate and House of 
Representatives in General Court assembled, and by authority of the 
same, that a part of Stow, a part of Harvard, and a part of Little- 
ton, all which are included within the bounderies, viz. : Beginning 
at the road southerly of John Robbins' buildings, and running 
southerly to Acton Corner three miles and ninety-two rods to a heap 
of stones ; from thence running southerly in Acton line, to a place 
called Flag Hill, being two miles, three quarters and ten rods to a 
heap of stones ; from thence westerly in Stow two miles and a quar- 
ter to a stake and pillar of stones in the Harvard line ; thence run- 
ning northerly through part of Harvard to a white oak tree by a 
cause- way ; from thence to the place first sit out from, be and hereby 
is incorporated into a District, by the name of Boxborough. And 
all the Polls and Estates that are included within the said bounder- 
ies shall belong to the said District, except those of such of the 
inhabitants of that part set of from Littleton, as shall not within the 
term of twelve months from the passing of this Act return their 
names into the office of the Secretary of this Commonwealth, signi- 
fying their desire to become inhabitants of the said District. 

Sect. 2. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, 
that the said District be and hereby is, invested with all the powers, 
privileges and immunities that towns in this Commonwealth do or 
may enjoy (except the privilege of sending a representative to the 
General Court) and the inhabitants of said District shall have liberty 
from time to time to join with the town of Stow, in choosing a Rep- 
resentative, and shall be notified of the time and place of election 
in like m inner with the inhabitants of the said town of Stow, by a 



wiirnuit troiii the seloctinen of the said town, dirt-ctetl to a consta- 
ble, or constables of the said District, requiring him or them to 
warn the inhabitants to attend the meeting at the time and place 
a|)j)ointod ; which warrant shall be seasonably returned by the said 
constable or constables ; and the representative may be chosen 
indifferently from the said Town or District. The pay or allowance 
to be borne by the town and district in proportion as they shall from 
time to time pay to the state tax. 

Sect. 3. And be it lurther enacted that Jonathan Wood, Es(|., 
of Stow, be and he hereby is empowered to issue his warrant directed 
to some principle inhabitant within the said district requiring him to 
warn the inhabitants of said District qualified to vote in town affairs, 
to assemble at some suitable time and place in the said District, to 
choose such officers as towns and Districts by law are required to 
choose in the month of March annually : Provided nevertheless that 
the inhabitants of the said District shall pay their propotionable 
part of all such town, county and state Taxes as are already assessed 
by the said respective towns from which they are taken, and their 
propotionable part of all public debts due from the said Towns ; and 
also provide for the Support of all the Poor who were inhabitants 
within the said District before the passing of this act, and shall be 
l)rought back for maintance hereafter. 

And whereas it is tit and necessary, that the whole of the «aid 
District should belong to one and the same County. 

Sect, 4. Be it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid that 
that part of the said District which is set off from the town of Har- 
vard in the county of Worcester, shall be, and hereby is annexed 
and set to the county of Middlesex. And the line established by 
this act as the boundry betwixt the said town of Harvard and the 
said District shall hereafter be the boundry line betwixt the said 
county of Middlesex and the said county of Worcester. 

(This Act passed Feb. 25, 1783.) 



1793. 

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Com- 
monwealth of Massachusetts in General Court assembled : 
The petition of the inhabitants of the town of Boxborough 
humbly represents that the inhabitants of the town of Littleton °to 
which town the said town of Boxborough is adjacent, controverts 
with them the line which divides the same towns, from which con- 
troversy there may probably arise a multiplicity of law suits and 
animosities, unless the Legislature should condescend to interpose 
and to establish an obvious and uncontrovertable boundary for them. 
The best method of doing this as the petitioners conceive would f)e 
to have a committee from your honors on the place where the 
divisional line is. Another advantage which may result from the 
attendance of such a committee, is, that a number of persons who 
are withm the limits of Boxborough, but taxed to the town cf Littleton, 
may be reasonably induced to unite entirely the inhabitants of Box- 
borough. Wherefore the inhabitants of Boxborough humbly pray 
that such a committee may be appointed, and the said inhabitants 
will be ready to pay such committee their expenses and for their 
trouble and service. 

Silas Taylor, ) Aaents of 

Solomon Taylor, C^ox^orow^A. 
June 5, 1793. ^ 

Committee was appointed in accordance with this petition June 
6, 1793. 

To the honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General Court assembled: 
The subscribers humbly show that they with their polls and 
estates by a certain act of this honorable court passed the 25th 
February 1783, entitled an act for erecting a district in the County 
of Middlesex by the name of Boxborough were included within 
certain boundaries in said act mentioned taken from the Town of 
Littleton, and that it was by the same act among other things 
therein enacted that all the polls and estates included within the 



10 

bounciaric's of the said dibtivct oi Boxboioiiirh should holong to said 
district, except those of" such of the iuhabitauts of that pint set off 
from Littleton as should not within the term of twelve months 
from the passing rtf said a<t return their natnes into the Secretar> 's 
otiice of this Commonwealth signifyiug tiieir desire of becoming 
inhabitants of said district, and your Petitioners humbly show to 
this honorable court that they have never so returned their names, 
signifying their desire of bec»niing inhabitants of the said district of 
Hoxl)orough, and whereas the said district of Boxborough by their 
agtMits have petitioned tliis honorable court to establish the certain 
boundaries between said district and said Town of Littleton, the 
suliscribers therefore your humble Petitioners remonstrate against 
the object of said Petition which your Petitioners conceive is more 
to divide them fi-om the Town of Littleton than to ascertain more 
certain boundaries, wherefore your Petitioners pray and it is their 
earnest desire that they and their families and estates may continue 
to belong to the said Town of Littleton as they heretofore have and 
as in duty Iiound will ever pray. 

January 17, 1794. 

Jonathan Patch Eleazer Fletcher 

Isaac Patch Daniel Whitcomb 

Nathaniel Cobleioh Elias Taylor 

John Cobleioh John Kidder 

Stephen Jennings Mary Taylor 

John Wood Calvin Blanchard 
John Hartwkll, Jr. 



AN ACT for settling the line between Littleton and Boxborough. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and ITonse of Iiepi-e.'<ent(tfiref<, in gen- 
eral court assembled, and by the authority of the same, that a line 
drawn from a heap of stones in the road, twenty-one rods and a half, 
8f)Utherly of the house of John Robbins, of said Littleton, and run- 
ning easterly in a straight line, about three miles to the corner of 
the town of Acton, at a heap of stones, shall be, and hereby do es- 
tablish as the dividing line between the said town of Littleton and 



11 

the district of Boxboroiigh, under the restrictions aud with the pro- 
visions as to certain persons and estates herein made. 

And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, that all those 
persons who were inhabitants of the said town of Littleton included 
by the line aforesaid, within the said district of Boxborough, and 
who did not, according to an act made in the year of our Lord, 
one thousand seven hundred and eighty-three, intitled " An Act for 
Erecting a District in the County of Middlesex, by the name of 
Boxborough," return their names, their polls and their estates, 
within twelve months from the passing of the same Act, into the 
office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, signifying their desire 
to become inhabitants of the said district of Boxborough, shall, with 
the lands they improved at the time of passing the same act, with 
their said estates, during the lime of their improving the same, be- 
long to said Littleton, and that where there has been, or shall i)e a 
transfer of the same estates, either by grant, devise or descent, the 
persons to whom such transfer has been or shall be made, and their 
successors may apply to the said district of Boxborough to become 
members thereof, and whenever on such application, the clerk of 
said district of Boxborough, upon the vote of the inhabitant- of the 
said district, at a legal meeting, shall enter the name of any such 
person as an inhabitant, and transmit a certiticate of such vote to 
the clerk of the town of Littleton, such person shall from thence 
forward, with his polls and estate lying in said Boxborough, be 
deemed and taken to belong to said Boxborough. 

Provided, that when there shall be a state, county or town tax, 
ordered to be assessed the said persons and estates shall be taxed 
thereto, in the town where they shall actually belong, at the time of 
ordering or assessing such tax, their changing their inhabitancy in 
manner aforesaid notwithstanding. And also that whenever a change 
of inhabitancy shall take place, agreeably to this act, the clerk of 
the town of Littleton shall transmit to the secretary's office a certifi- 
cate thereof, in order that the same may be taken into consideration 
by the Legislature in apportioning future state taxes on the said 
town of Littleton and district of Boxborough. 

(This Act passed February 20, 1794.) 



12 

1868. 

To the Honorable Senate and Ilouf^e of Reprei^entativesi of the 
General Court (f the ConimonweaJlh (f Massac1iUHettt> : 

Respectfully represent your petitioners, selectmen of the town of 
Hoxborough, in the County of Middlesex, tli;il within the limits of 
said town there are two farms, one owned by Henry T. Taylor, and 
the other owned l»y William Hartwell, and that the said Taylor and 
the said Hartwell live on said farms, and that the said Taylor 
and said Hartwell claim that said farms arc within the territorial 
limits of the town of Littleton, in said County, and that they are 
voters in said Littleton, and subject to taxation therein; and that 
the said town of Littleton claim that said farms are part of said 
town, and subject to taxation in said town, and residents therein, 
residents in Littleton, wherefore, your petitioners pray that said 
farms may be set oft' from ^aid town of Littleton to said town 
of Boxborough, and be made part of the territory by law, 
appertaining to said Boxborough. 

Ephraim B. Cobleigh, \ Selectmen 
Jacob Littlefield, |- of 

Benjamin S. Mead. j Boxborough. 

To the Honorable^ the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts : 

We the undersigned, inhabitants and legal voters of the town of 
Boxborough, in the County of Middlesex, respectfully remonstrate 
against the petition of the selectmen of the said town of Boxborough 
that a part of the town of Littleton may be set oft" to the town of 
Boxborough, and request that the prayer of the petitioners may not 

be granted. 

Orman Ewings, 
Ephraim H. Raymond, 
John Blanchakd, 
Geo. VV. Ramsdell, 
A. Haywakd, 
John Fletcher, 
Timothy L. Wood. 



13 

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Gen- 
eral Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts : 

The undersigned legal voters of the town of Littleton in the 
County of Middlesex, respectfully remonstrate against the petition 
of Ephraim B. Cobleigh, Jacob Littlefield and Benjamin S. Mead, 
selectmen of Boxborough, praying that the farms of Henry T.' 
Taylor and William Hartwell, may be set off from said town of 
Littleton and become part of the territory of said town of Box- 
borough, and request that the prayer of the petitioners may not 
be granted. 

George W. Sanderson, ) Selectmen 
William Kimball, C of 

George W. Tuttle, ) Littleton. 

Henry T. Taylor, 

W. H. Hartwell, 

and 106 others. 



Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 

The Committee on Towns to whom was referred the petition of 
the town of Boxborough, praying that certain farms in the town 
of Littleton may be set off to the town of Boxborough, have had 
the same under consideration and beg leave to report, 

That, the further consideration thereof be referred to the next 
General Court, which is respectfully submitted, by order of the 
committee, 

Edward Crocker, /or the committee. 

Accepted by Senate. Concurred in by the House, Feb., 1868. 

In the following year this petition was abandoned. 



14 



1869. 



To the Honorable l^enate and House of Itepresentatives of the Com- 
monweahh of Massachusetts, in Gerieral Court assembled : 

The undersigued citizens of the towns of Boxborough and Acton, 
ill the county of Middlesex, Respectfully petition that the territory 
now included within the limits of the town of Boxborough, and 
within that portion of the town of Acton called West Acton, may be 

incorporated into a new town by the name of , believing 

that the common interest will be promoted thereby. 



H. E. Felch 
Jerome Priest 
Oliver Wetherbee 
Ephraim B. Cobleigh 
Jacob Littlefield 
Benjamin S. Mead 
Simon Hartwell 
Paul Hay ward 
R. T. Cobleigh 
L. J. Bradford 

D. W. Coi)leigh 
Stevens Hayward 
A. A. Richardson 
Jos. K. Blanchard 
Augustine A. Wetherbee 
Alex, R. Eastman 
Peter VV^hitcomb 
Joseph Hayward 
Granville Whitcomb 
John Hoar 

Jerome B. Whitney 

E. L. Battles 
S. H. Hoar 

J. Blanchard, 2d 
Ephraim H. Raymond 
John Blanchard 
James S. Chester 
George Kendall 
A. Hayward 



George Ramsdell 
P. W. Houghton 
Samuel Sargent 
Alvin Parker 
John Wetherbee 
Augustus W. Wetherbee 
Samuel Wetherbee 
Francis H. Wetherbee 
Varnum Taylor 
George Hay or 
Samson D. Talbot 
Thomas B. Pane 
Nathaniel B. Pane 
Silas H. Hoar 
B. S. Hagar 
James H. Whitcomb 
Rufus Kings 
Timothy L. Wood 
Francis Conant 
Frank A. Patch 
Luther H. Ewings 
Amos Holbrook 
Austin A. Richardson 
Simeon Wetherbee 
Orman Ewings 
Patrick R. Frawley 
John A. Hill 
Georgre H. Jackson 



15 



Report of the Com*^^ on Towns. 



COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS. 

House of Representatives, February 18, 1869. 

The Committee on Towns, to whom was referred the petition of 
H. E. Felch and others, of Acton and Boxborough, for the formation 
of a new town including the whole territory of the town of Box- 
borough, and that part of Acton called West Acton, and the several 
petitions in aid and remonstrances against the same, have viewed 
the premisess and heard the parties at length, and report the follow- 
ing facts : — 



Boxborough is a very small town, without any village proper, or 
any store or place of business within its limits. 



The petitions from Boxborough maintain that their town is too 
imall, is unknown ; that they have no railroad station in town ; that 
there is no trade or business there, and that a large share of their 
produce is sold in West Acton, where, also, most of their purchases 
are made. In other words, that their trade promotes the growth of 
West Acton, and that therefore they ought to be embraced in one 
township, and receive an equivalent for this advantage in the tax- 
ation of the property which they contributed to enhance. 



Upon all the facts the Committee, with all but entire unanimity, 
are of opinion that the petitioners have not maintained that the pub- 
lic good requires the formation of a new town pursuant to their 
prayer. 



Ifi 

It is true that Boxborough is too small ; hut rather than cripple 
Acton in her enterprise or encroach upon her historic limits for the 
benefit of that town, as her inhabitants have no desire to retain 
their name and distinct organization, it will be an easy task to so 
apportion her ^territory to other towns as to benefit all and injure 
none ; but with this matter the Committee are not asked and do not 
desire to interfere. 

The Committee report that the petitioners have leave to withdraw. 

Per order, 

T. G. KENT. 

The Legislature accepted the Report Feb. 18 and Feb. 19, 1869. 



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